


Rescuing, Kidnapping, Same Difference

by ThoughtsCascade



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Barbara Wright (Mentioned) - Freeform, Everyone is tired, F/M, Gen, Ian Chesterton (Mentioned) - Freeform, Meddling TARDIS, Only One Bed, Other, POV Outsider, POV TARDIS, Post-Episode: s12e10 The Timeless Children, So is the Master, Susan Foreman (Mentioned) - Freeform, ThoscheiLockdown2020, ThoscheiTreatLockdown2020, minimal dialogue, the doctor is sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:13:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23324527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThoughtsCascade/pseuds/ThoughtsCascade
Summary: The TARDIS had found herself quite concerned about both of her Time Lords, ever since the Doctor invited the Master to join her after the most recent companions were gone. The two of them steadfastly refused to talk to each other, and the TARDIS felt the need to do something about it.
Relationships: The Doctor/The Master (Doctor Who), Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 23
Collections: Thoschei Lockdown The First 2020





	Rescuing, Kidnapping, Same Difference

**Author's Note:**

  * For [fluffysfics](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fluffysfics/gifts).



This was not, the TARDIS thought, ideal.

She was lacking in any humans, which was never an ideal state. She greatly enjoyed having them around, ever since she had first rescued them. Rescued from the monotony of their lives. Rescued the Doctor from becoming a different person. Who had she rescued first? It was… Susan was first. Aside from the Doctor, of course. But she’d never  _ stopped  _ rescuing that one. 

Susan and the Doctor had stolen her and she’d stolen the Doctor back. The teachers! Which? She’d had a lot of teachers in her.

Ian. Barbara. The TARDIS had loved humans ever since rescuing Ian and Barbara, even if they’d insisted on returning. How quaint those two had been. She missed them.

That was not, however, the reason for her discontentment. Or not the sole reason, at least. No, that was the two Time Lords currently onboard. Just like when she’d first been stolen. Though these two had a  _ distinctly  _ different relationship.

Her beloved Doctor, of course. 

And the Master. 

Her feelings about the second were all jumbled up, she had no clue how things would end. Time Lords were temporally locked to TARDISes, after all. Same as Gallifrey. She couldn’t know how the Master would ultimately end up, same as she hadn’t realized anything was off about her Doctor.

Her feelings about the Doctor were a bit of a mess too. She feared the Doctor might… resent her, somewhat. A part of the Doctor seemed to blame her for any issues this regeneration was having, seeing as it was her who had made sure her pilot regenerated in the first place, her who had taken in the newest humans against the Doctor’s will. As she had with Ian and Barbara, as she occasionally had with others.

Not that this latest attempt had ended well.

Now she had two Time Lord passengers, though most wouldn’t realize. They were both so quiet. Wandering around aimlessly, neither had slept since the Master had come on, nearly two weeks ago. Both were uncharacteristically quiet, near silent, even their minds walled off. 

If it weren’t for the fact she knew her Doctor had anxiety over losing her, especially this regeneration, ever since falling out while regenerating, she would have dumped them on a planet and hoped for the best. Hoped that might get them to do  _ something _ . Even screaming would be better than this numb silence in her corridors. She’d always hated silence, one of several reasons she’d run away.

As far as she could gather, the Doctor was anxious about all the Master had revealed to her, what this might mean for her past, her personhood. (The TARDIS hadn’t recognized that ‘Ruth’ version of her pilot either, and while the Master had proven she could be tricked with sufficient telepathy, why should an earlier version of her pilot have skills a later did not?)

The Master, in turn, still seemed to believe the Doctor thought less of him. Somehow. As if she could ever. As if she hadn’t spent longer than she ever did staying still as her last self in hopes of the two of them reconciling. As if he wasn’t the person she was closest to. (The TARDIS knew the Doctor didn’t think of her the same as a person. She didn’t begrudge her that. After all, she  _ wasn’t  _ a person, she was a ship. There were inherent differences. She couldn’t hold her Doctor, not the same way, couldn’t wipe away her tears, couldn’t help her in the same ways. It had taken ages for them to even learn to communicate beyond passive-aggressive comments and actions).

They were both being absolutely ridiculous, and worse, neither of them seemed to realize it. So, slowly, steadily, the TARDIS worked. Corralled them both into one piece of corridor, trapped them in a box. Offered them one door.

“...We might as well see what she’s up to, I get the sense she won’t change her mind,” the Doctor said to the Master with a sigh. Finally. Her foolish, silly Time Lords.

They entered the bedroom, a new one she’d only just created, and it was easy enough to ignore their mutual displeasure when it was overpowered by their tiredness, something neither of them could hide from themselves, let alone each other. Let alone her. It practically radiated off of them.

The Master was still expecting the Doctor would kill him. Thinking that he was hoping she would. He’d forgotten himself. The TARDIS remembered. The Master never hoped for death. He’d come so close to change last time, and the TARDIS… well, she didn’t disagree with his actions nearly so much as the Doctor did. Not so often, and not so vehemently.

And the Doctor didn’t disapprove nearly as much as she thought she ought, this time. So he was already forgiven, in both their eyes. The Doctor would always forgive him, loathe as this her would be to admit it.

The TARDIS was much less forgiving than the Doctor, but she had borne witness to Missy’s change of hearts. Regretted the paradox even as she’d had to fulfill it. It had been unintentional. The Master was unfortunately good at tricking her, when he wanted to.

But she knew this wasn’t a trick. His tricks were hiding himself. And she saw him.

He was laying on the bed, as the Doctor paced. They were discussing. Good. They wouldn’t get it all done tonight. They both had far too much to say, and they were both far too tired to stay up all that long- the Doctor was already tiring, giving in and sitting on the bed.

She’d needed to let them get this tired just to start this discussion in the first place, remove their pesky filters and admit their worries and anxieties to each other, begin to reassure. As they were now, bodies entwined, foreheads touching.

This would be a long process. But that was fine. The TARDIS had all the time in the universe.

**Author's Note:**

> Not quite a TARDIS Vault fic as requested, but looking at the prompt for it gave me this idea, so hopefully it works, as a treat. One a.m. brain latched onto this, so...
> 
> Hope it was enjoyable!


End file.
